First Day of Preschool!

I dropped Dom off for his first day of preschool this morning. He was so excited all morning, and was ready to go half an hour early. I was trying not to hype him up too much because I know how he gets with pressure situations. 

He powered through his breakfast, got dressed in his new clothes, helped me pack his lunch and backpack, put on his nice shoes, and was ready to go pose for pictures!

He almost never poses for photos when we actually want to take them. This was a big surprise! 

I am so grateful these two have each other <3. And also so grateful Emilia will now have some "alone" time for a few hours a week.

As a special treat, we drove there in Daddy's Golf, and left Emilia and Daddy at home. There were quite a few kids there already as it's a preschool/daycare split class. He was nervous when we walked in, but of course Aunty Ashleigh was there to help him feel more comfortable. He didn't want me to leave, but didn't actually shed any tears that I saw, so that's better than I expected!

We waited in the car for a few minutes talking about what drop-off would look like and what he could expect. This boy doesn't like surprises, I tried my best to walk him through every step to prepare him this week. 

This is the birthday sign I made for the preschool! Looks pretty cute up there :)

As I got back in the car to leave, I could see him standing there looking super nervous and I got all emotional. So not like me! Not because he's growing up so fast or anything (although he is); I just felt bad because I know how hard first days are, and I always hated them. I'm grateful Ashleigh is there though, I know I don't have to worry about him. 

He is so ready for preschool! It's going to be really good for him socially, and I can't wait to see him playing with his new friends in a few weeks. We never really considered pulling him out because of COVID. I think, for us, the pros of him going to preschool 8 hours a week outweighed the risks. Besides, if we're going to get sick from Dom being at preschool, we're going to get sick from Ashleigh anyway since we see her so often haha. Those kids are all in our extended bubble anyway. I admit, Ashleigh probably doesn't stick her fingers in her nose and mouth as often as Dom does though...

Emilia is definitely enjoying this alone time already. She's played lego, done a few outfit changes, played with her babies, "doctored" me, read books, and more! So peaceful around here with no fighting!

She even got to play in Dom's fire house! 

AND with the garbage cans! 

We got one update from Ashleigh while Dom was at preschool that said, "He is currently playing 'garbage truck' with trucks and waffles! And making sure his friends are paying him money for the gas he's giving them!" Perfection. Glad to hear he's playing Dom games, and not just crying in the corner! When I went to pick him up he was excited to come home, but also excited to tell me the fun things they did at preschool! He told me about seeing a spider, watching the workers make speed bumps outside, singing a goldfish song, eating his snack from his new lunch box, and peeing on their toilet. He clung pretty close to Ashleigh most of the day, but I expected nothing less. He got confident a couple times and went off to play, but if he felt overwhelmed or something at least he had his safe person there. I'm sure every week will just get better and better. 

He's excited to go again on Thursday. I consider that a win! When we got back in the car I asked him if he gave preschool a thumbs up. This was his response...

After a quick discussion about how to do a thumbs up...

So proud of this young man, and excited to enter this new phase of life! I can't imagine what it will be like when he's off to school full time... That won't be for a couple years at least though. One step at a time, Renee!